


I'm Holding This Pain

by eelegy



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: (i only titled this that because of the meme), Gen, I mean, it's short and sad, what do you expect from a fic inspired by Dreamcatcher's Deja Vu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-10-27 20:53:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20766800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eelegy/pseuds/eelegy
Summary: Jungeun wishes things were different, but she wouldn't give the past up for anything. Jinsoul makes the most of what's left.





	I'm Holding This Pain

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by: Dreamcatcher's Deja Vu

"Hey! You're back!" Jinsoul falls into step next to Jungeun, her easy grin a little more brittle than Lip remembers. Jungeun supposes it would be, considering what they've both been through. Jungeun isn't the same as she was at the academy either, the boisterous, teasing humor mellowed out to something almost bordering on stern. Oh, if her younger self could see her now. Oh, if Ji-

"Yeah, been a while, 'Soul. You're looking terrible." Jungeun bumps Jinsoul with her shoulder, pointedly ignoring the road her mind invited her down.

Jinsoul laughs, the crinkles at the corners of her eyes the same as always, "Yeah, my new class is crazy! They'd have given both yours and my class a run for our money. Last week, their cleric, Hyunjin, dared *herself* to wrestle a Minotaur. A Minotaur! I don't think I even *saw* one of those until my third year. And even then, I still have the mark to prove it." Jinsoul jollily pulls her sleeve up to show off a wide white scar on her forearm. Jinsoul's entire body is littered with little scars, a testament to her years of training and fighting and her foolhardy way of throwing herself into the fray, hammer swinging, before fully taking stock of the situation. "Obviously, I had to pull her out of there. I'd say she learned her lesson, but with those kids, you never really know."

"Well maybe if you stopped bragging about the dumb shenanigans your class got up to, they might not be inspired to do the same. Goodness knows I was influenced by you. And Jiw-" Jungeun cuts herself off. It had been so easy to forget what happened for a second.

Jinsoul mercifully ignores the slip-up. "I *could* stop, but why would I have done the things if not to brag? A young brawler-in-training does not simply attack the hive of the giant armored bees for fun. Or for honey. It was for bragging rights!"

"Jinsoul, your face was so swollen you were on a liquid diet for a month. I'm sure I still have the pictures somewhere. Maybe show that to your students."

Jinsoul grins, “But you know what? It got me a girlfriend. She felt so bad for me that she dated me for a whole three weeks!"

Jungeun groans, feeling years younger as she tries to process Jinsoul's line of thinking. "Vivi dated you for a week at best to make Haseul jealous.”

Jinsoul shrugs, none too concerned about the reason for Vivi’s interest. “A girlfriend’s a girlfriend’s a girlfriend. And anyway, I didn’t see you dating anyone. You were too hung up on-” They both wince. It wasn't as though Jungeun’s childhood crush wasn’t common knowledge, but the events of their graduation exam left far deeper cuts than ‘The one that got away’. “Shit. Sorry, Jungeun.”

Jungeun huffs something almost close to a laugh. “It’s not as though we didn’t have good times. All of us.”

“Do you think we should talk about it? I know I’m the not the first person you'd want to talk about her with, but,” Jinsoul shrugs. 

Jungeun kicks a rock as they transition from the covered walkway to a less groomed outdoor path. “I just,” She sighs, looking at the archery range. Jiwoo had spent most of her free time there, and it was painfully unchanged, the fence still sporting the gash from where Jungeun had tried her hand, wanting desperately to have a reason to spend more time with Jiwoo. “I just wish I could go back. She was so *good*. There must have been something I could have done, right? Like-”

Jinsoul smiles a thin, brittle smile, shaking her head. “Stop right there. Don’t fantasize about taking that curse. It wasn’t your fault.” Jinsoul scuffs a boot over a smooth stone on the path, and Jungeun notices that it’s the ones that Haseul had given her years back in apology for getting sick on Jinsoul’s old pair after a run in with a mis-brewed draught of fire breath. They had been worn in and the ridiculous colored laces had been replaced with blood red leather ones.

Jungeun sighs. “I know. It’s just-” She looks back at the archery range. “It’s unfair to take her. She was-”

“The best of us, I know.”


End file.
